Days - Larkin

Question 1

Summary - Days

Answer 1

• explores philosophical questions - ‘what are days for’
• reveals deeper anxiety about time, purpose and mortality
• our days inevitably lead to death
• our days inevitably lead to death

Question 2

Key ideas - Days

Answer 2

• time and mortality - every day brings us closer to death
• meaning of life
• religious tension
• Larkin subtly doubts whether faith can truly explain life’s purpose

Question 3

Structure and Tone - Days

Answer 3

• two short stanzas - very conversational
• simplicity contrasts depth of subject
• deceptively simple, ironic tone
• starts somewhat comforting. but ends unsettling

Question 4

Context - Days

Answer 4

• post war realism - reflects mortality, time and meaning in life
• Larkin, an atheist, frequently questions religion and provides a human perspective on life and death
• The Movement’s : clarity, realism, and emotional restrain

Question 5

Key quotes - Days - ‘What are days for’ ‘Days are… live’

Answer 5

• simple almost childlike repetition
• suggests we don’t grasp onto days significance

Question 6

Key Quotes - Days -‘Ah solving… fields’

Answer 6

• poem ends ambiguously
• ‘long coats’ evoke funerals and mortality
• those who try to ‘solve’ summon death itself

Question 7

strong comparisons with Days

Answer 7

Moments of Grace - Duffy
Prayer - Duffy
Nothing to be said - Larkin